How practical experiences, educational routes and multidisciplinary teams influence genetic counselors clinical practice in EuropeShow others and affiliations
2018 (English)In: Clinical Genetics, ISSN 0009-9163, E-ISSN 1399-0004, Vol. 93, no 4, p. 891-898Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
The main objective of our study was to explore whether, and to what extent, genetic counselors characteristics impact on their tasks in practice. Specifically, we explored the complementariness between genetic counselors and medical geneticists and therefore looked at the most relevant tasks of genetic counselors, according to genetic counselors themselves and according to the medical geneticists they work with. A total of 104 genetic counselors and 29 medical geneticists from 15 countries completed a purposefully designed questionnaire. Results showed that most genetic counselors in Europe perform similar tasks, irrespective of their backgrounds. When looking at the factors influencing genetic counselors roles data showed that the type of tasks performed by genetic counselors is associated with the years of experience in the field, not with their background or education. Of particular interest was the consensus between genetic counselors and medical geneticists regarding the genetic counselors role. Not surprisingly, tasks with more psychosocial implications were seen as genetic counselors eligibility while tasks with more medical implications were seen as medical geneticists attribution. Our study shows that most genetic counselors work in tune with international recommendations and seem to be supportive of multidisciplinary teams. Corroborating our data with previous research, we discuss potential implications for practice and training in genetic counseling.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
WILEY , 2018. Vol. 93, no 4, p. 891-898
Keywords [en]
genetic counseling; medical genetics; multidisciplinary practice
National Category
Medical Genetics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-147086DOI: 10.1111/cge.13197ISI: 000427471000019PubMedID: 29251775OAI: oai:DiVA.org:liu-147086DiVA, id: diva2:1197177
Note
Funding Agencies|Linkoping University
2018-04-122018-04-122018-04-12